Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey all,

I've taken converted Office Max containers as far as they can go, and now want to get my yearling, female Eastern Indigo her adult cage.

I've just come into a little extra cash, through a writing contest, and can afford a nice cage. Any suggestions on brands and sources? I'm looking to go large and preferably plastic as apposed to glass.

thanks,

Josh

Glad to hear the girl is doing well....would love to see some update pics. If you want to go plastic, there are quite a few good companies. I personally use Neodesha and Vision. Neos are currently not being made but there are many used ones for sale. I use Visions for quite a few of my herps and they work real well....I would recommend the 6' model. I'm sure you will get some other recommendations and they are probably very good choices as well.

Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center
Lake Forest, IL

>>Hey all,
>>
>>I've taken converted Office Max containers as far as they can go, and now want to get my yearling, female Eastern Indigo her adult cage.
>>
>>I've just come into a little extra cash, through a writing contest, and can afford a nice cage. Any suggestions on brands and sources? I'm looking to go large and preferably plastic as apposed to glass.
>>
>>thanks,
>>
>>Josh
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Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, IL

Hey Rob,

She’s indeed doing very well. Growing bigger. But more especially, she’s grown bolder. I’d say time spent in her hide and wandering her cage are about 50/50 now…and in fact she’s watching me from her cage right now. She seems to always be hungry and is very aggressive about feeding – I’ve taken to feeding her from forceps and giving her a little bit of “hunting action” with each feeding (and indeed she’s given the dead mice a little big of thrashing and that pinning and twisting motion…I think I even heard her snap the vertebrae once). Her boldness makes approaching the cage very…interesting. I’ve never really had a problem, once I open the cage and lift her hide, she usually realizes it’s not feeding time, and once I get her out she’s a puppy dog again (it’s great having the excitement of an aggressive animal and the fun of a tame animal rolled up in one).

You’d be proud of little Lenore. She’s been quite the ambassador of the snake world lately. She’s been held by at least half a dozen individuals who had never touched a snake, were afraid of snakes, and swore they never would touch a snake (I’d lure them in by saying that, in the presence of an Indigo, they’d be safer from venomous snakes than they’d ever been in their lives). The last one was, when I made a pit stop, on the way home from school, to my brother’s school, and stayed for a few days. A Japanese exchange student, who was terrified by snakes, eventually saw how much fun everyone else was having seeing Lenore, and eventually was persuaded to touch the snake. Ten minutes later, she was holding Lenore, laughing and calling friends in to see her “holding the big snake!”

So now Lenore has been tested in large groups and she did very well and I’d trust her to show to children – so I’m thinking of contacting Volo Bog and seeing if I can do some kind of educational snake presentation this summer.

Back to the cage, I think I’ll likely go with one of your suggestions. I’m pretty sure I want to go plastic (the plastic storage bins have been so easy to maintain…compared to the heavy, hard to clean glass aquariums of my youth). And I’m pretty sure I want to go with something stackable – as, when I have a little more money to throw around, I want to get a male (maybe try breeding them in a few years).

I’ll be home from school in a few weeks and will have to come by the Wildlife Center – and bring some friends who’ve been wanting to see it.

take care,

Josh

PS - I'll try and take soem pictures and an updated measurement sometime soon.

Stackable neodeshas are not the easiest find either and certainly are not easy to find in larger sizes (do they even make the box style on the big cages? I think the rack system the make would be your only bet).

Personally I thin animal plastics has some perfect cages for you. I also think they can make whatever size you want (dont quote me). They are more sturdy than vision cages and more available then neodesha. I also think they look nicer and will stack better than both other choices mentioned.

Their cages can also be purchased with built in heat sources which I hear have a more even distibution of heat than flexwatt (which I have not had any trouble with on that note but hey...its a selling point they have and I wont argue it without having tested it).

Just a suggestion.

Good to hear your snake is working hard to keep a good name for its order. Keep up the good work.

Those are nice looking cage. I'll definitely consider them. The prices seem pretty good too.

In the larger models, it looks like they have 72Lx24Dx24H, 72Lx30Dx18H, 84Lx30Dx18H.

They also have the option of swing doors and sliding doors. What prefrences do you all have in that regard?

Something you may want to consider is making your own. It's far cheaper to make your own cages & you can make them the way YOU want them. The only advantage I see to buying cages is the weight.
I built some slide door cages out of white melamine last spring & they turned out quite nice, but they weigh well over 100lbs each. However, I only had about $250 wrapped up in to 5 X 2 X 2 cages.

Eric
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If Jesus is your co-pilot, you'd better change seats!

I posted this pic back in the spring, shortly after completing them. You might have seen it before, but if not, here it is again.

Eric

>>If Jesus is your co-pilot, you'd better change seats!

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If Jesus is your co-pilot, you'd better change seats!

Thanks for the pic Eric - those cages do look nice. It's something for me to consider. I do have concerns about weight though - in that I'm a soon to be graduating student who will be at the parents' home soon, but likely I'll move around soon there after. Not knowing where I'll be or how often that will change, I'd prefer something light.

Has anyone here tried CagesByDesign? How are they?

While they do offer some fairly large enclosures...I do not really think they are the best suited for Drymarchon. I see those cages as more of a decorative housing for people with possibly smaller herp collections and living room displays. Just my thoughts but I have not really considered them too much. I also hear they are not the greatest at holding heat and humidity...which isnt really the biggest issue for Drymarchon anyway. They do have some great looking enclosures though. I would actually like to do one for an anaconda sometime. The walk in style.

As far as the AP cages go and the doors...I cannot really think why one way would be better than another for an Indigo. If they all lock securely I would think it would just be your preference. I would say sliding for anything venomous because it makes it easier to stay out of the way and close safely while using a hook opening method. I can also see some good advantages with sliding doors for larger constrictors (like lock devices might not be able to be as secure). But with the exception of strong feeding response, powerfull jaws, and a primative venom delivery system...this really isn't a concern.

But maybe some other folks will have a different opinion.

hi; I have 3 enclosures from cages by design. 8ft L by 2ft W by 2ft H & 6ft L by 2ft W by 2ft H for my Indigos and a 3ft L by 3FT W BY 2 FT H for my Emerald tree boa. Once you get past putting the cage together it works out great . They offer many options to customize. They are EXPENSIVE
My biggest problem is of course the waste. The large cages allows easy access. I have laminated waterproof floors. There crap does work its way into the slots fro the doors. (its hard to get out) As for humidity and heat. Due to the large sizes of the cages it tough to keep the humidity up. Plus the cages are in very dry rooms. heat is no problem. i have a 100 watt heat bulb at one end so there is a nice temperature difference.
Daily spraying helps

Good luck !

Mark

after years of building my own i have succumb to the lure of plastic cages. i would post a photo, but i haven't figured that out yet (hints?).

i would definitely check out boaphile plastics. i think jeff's cages are sturdy and well constructed. they come in black, white, or gray, several different sizes, and options.

on a cautionary note, they are getting a reputation for slow service and spotty email replies. jeff is very busy, but if you have the patience, i think the cages are well worth the wait.

matt

Thanks, I'll give them a look.

As for pics, you can post pics on the "Photo Gallery" link above (under your screen name) and they will be listed, at the bottom of the page, anytime you post a message on the board. You just have to click and highlight one and it comes up with the message.

Thanks for the help, let's see if this works...

each unit in this stack is 48x24x1.5 feet. each one has a hole in the bottom of the cage leading to a large kitty litter box for a hide. low wattage flood lamps to the left provide basking area.

matt

Personally, I like the Vision Cages. They're the most durable cage out there & they look good too. They don't break down with age or UV like some of the others.
The only drawbacks I've run into are that a snake can get up on the lip above the doors & they're time consuming to clean.
That said, I'd go with models: 622, 422, or 433 for indigos.
I don't like the 632, as it is difficult to reach the back for cleaning (& I have long arms).
Animal Plastics are nice (& good guys to deal with), but I don't have any experience using them.
You can build your own cage, but after the time involved to do it right, the $$$ - you might as well buy a ready made one.
Max
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"I may be crazy, but ya know... I can rationalize just about anything."

I prefer vision also. They look nice with Mexican pottery hide spaces. Max may have a picture he can share since I am a Gomer and still can't figure out how to post pics.

One of Sighthunter's displays.

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Max Peterson, Cruise Director - ATROX Animal Technologies

Thank you Max. How's Cabo looking?

I like that. My mom does pottery and I think maybe I'll get her to make me some hides and the water dish.

I made a large ceramic hidebox/water bowl combination once - it looked great, but was a pain to get the snake out of, & once in a while one of my stunned rats would come back to life & hide in it.
It's hard to move something like that without spilling water
Make water bowls that they can't get under.
Other than that, it's great having custom made cage furniture.
Cheers, Max
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Max Peterson, Cruise Director - ATROX Animal Technologies

Good idea. Some of my pottery cost more than the animals that use them!

np

The look seems to work with desert species. My Drys have large pots and seem to become attached to them as do my Spilotes.